This site is dedicated to providing moderate-right opinions, and information and articles that counter some of the nonsense being inculcated in our young people by public schools and by many colleges and universities. It rejects multiculturalism, embraces the melting pot and celebrates the idea of America. *Vi er all Dansk nu.*

Sunday, January 19, 2014

The scandal is MSNBC

The bridge scandal started out
as a test for New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R). Now it has become a test for
the media. MSNBC, which long ago stopped being a news outlet in the sense of
going out to find facts and is largely indistinguishable from Democratic Party
talking points, has been going 24/7 since the bridge story broke. No surprise.
But then Saturday MSNBC decided to throw even the pretense of journalism
overboard.

It ran with a claim from Mayor Dawn Zimmer of Hoboken claiming
Christie withheld Sandy relief funds to gain approval for a business development.
Christie’s office put out a quick denial of the allegations, as did the
developers. MSNBC says the mayor has a personal diary that corroborates her
claim — a diary that has yet to be released, reviewed or verified. Rather than,
you know, investigate the story, MSNBC threw it out on the air hoping others
would follow. The Hill had the good sense to note this mayor had
changed her story from earlier claims that the funds were denied for not
backing him for governor.

MSNBC is a partisan network that
has been openly hostile to Governor Christie and almost gleeful in their
efforts attacking him, even taking the unprecedented step of producing and
airing a nearly three-minute attack ad against him this week. Governor Christie
and his entire administration have been helping Hoboken get the help they need
after Sandy, with the city already having been approved for nearly $70 million
dollars in federal aid and is targeted to get even more when the Obama
Administration approves the next rounds of funding. The Governor and Mayor
Zimmer have had a productive relationship, with Mayor Zimmer even recently
saying she’s ‘very glad’ he’s been our Governor. It’s very clear partisan
politics are at play here as Democratic mayors with a political axe to grind
come out of the woodwork and try to get their faces on television.

In short, the Hoboken mayor has been all over
the place, claiming different things have been for retribution. With no
correspondence or other documented communication with the governor, we’re supposed
to take a personal diary that could have been written at any point in time as
reliable? A professional news operation must be more than simply a bulletin
board for partisans.

The claim is on
its face somewhat ridiculous since the modest-sized town had asked for more
than $100 million (!) in funds and got $70 million, according to the statement
released by Christie’s office. And to boot, Zimmer made statements last
summer, produced by Christie’s office, praising the Sandy relief. She also tweeted this week that
she had a meeting with N.J. Transit on related issues and expressed her
appreciation. If this is “retribution” every city in New Jersey should be so lucky.

Christie’s team
then put out a flood of data showing MSNBC’s obsessive coverage and a string of tweets from
Zimmer on the New Jersey transit situation. It also set out examples of MSNBC’s
cartoonish coverage, including a sort of Democratic ad (!) against Christie.

The test for the mainstream
media and for medic “critics” (often merely on the prowl for Fox News
bias) is whether they find the actual scandal: The MSNBC hit-squad that does
not investigate, does not make any pretense of balance or fairness and is
nevertheless given legitimacy by other media elites.

This is also a lesson for
conservatives in dealing with liberal media bias. You don’t whine. You
present the facts, fully and fast. You present compelling evidence of bias. If
the conservatives want politicians who show some backbone when under attack by
phony news operations, they’d be wise to follow the Christie model.

In the meantime, Christie, in an
odd way, may be lucky here. MSNBC has turned a legitimate news story (the
bridge) into a vivid display of media bias. That in turn will give
conservatives who might otherwise see fit to pile on pause. Do they want to be
the couriers of MSNBC smears?

About Me

Russell Wilcox is a retired college professor who spends several months in Florida and several months in Rhode Island each year, and whose interests include boating and sailing, sports, political activism, ballroom dancing and bridge. He has an MBA from Harvard, a Computer Systems CAGS from Bryant and a BS from Northeastern. He has worked in industry for EG&G and Texas Instruments, operated his own business with more than 200 employees, and served as Director of the Computer Information Systems Program for Stonehill College. An Army veteran and private pilot, he is a published author, and is the proud father of four children and the proud grandfather of seven grandchildren and one greatgrandchild. A holder of two patents in microchip connections and a true product of the melting pot, his father is the son of a Yankee farmer, and his mother the first generation daughter of Italian immigrants who retained their culture, but strove mightily to become Americans, sending four sons to fight against Hitler and Mussolini.